Forwards coach Neal Hatley confident Wallabies can win World Cup
Eddie Jones took over as Australia head coach earlier in the year
©PA
Australia forwards coach Neal Hatley expressed confidence that the team can go on to win the Rugby World Cup despite their struggling form last year.
The Wallabies managed just five wins from 14 matches last year following which Dave Rennie was sacked from the role and was replaced by Eddie Jones. The slump in form also saw Australia slip to the seventh position in the World Rugby Rankings.
"I know (Wallabies attack coach) Scott Wisemantel really well," he said.
"I worked with 'Wise' so he was the first bloke I phoned and I asked what he thought (after being approached by Jones).
"And he said '100 per cent we can win the World Cup'. Otherwise he would't have been involved.
"I look at the players, I see players who are really hungry. I think we've got the class."
The Wallabies will kick-start their Rugby Championship campaign with a clash against the Springboks on 8th July. It will also be the first game for Australia since Jones took over for the second time and Hatley believes a victory will create the much-needed momentum heading into the competition.
"It's a great test," he said.
"The Springboks, of course, always have two sets of front-rowers and are always ready to roll on and off so it's pretty much as much in the deep end as you could get for this first Test.
"It's probably what we would have wanted, to go away to Loftus, which is a real fortress for them. A game where Australia haven't won before and take on the world champions.
"Yeah, it'll give us a real good bar mark of where we are, what we need to do and where we need to keep improving. It's fantastic."
